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E ULOG Y 



LIFE AND CHARACTER 



WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON, 



PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES; 

F>ELIVEKED BEFORE THE CITIZENS OF SAVANNAH, IN Till 
INDEPENDENT PRESBYTEKIAN CHURCH, 



WEDNESDAY, MAY 12th, 1841. 



BY THE HON. JOHN MACPIIERSOX BERRIEN. 



^nbnniTcif) : 

W. T. Wl I. I. I \ M S 
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SAVANNAH, May 18//,; 1841. 
' To the Hon. John Macimierson Berrien. 

Dear Sir: — The undersigned Committee of Citizens of Savan- 
nah, recently charged with the duty of selecting an Orator to 
deliver a Eulogy on the Life and Character of General William 
Henry Harrison, late President of the United States, request 
you to submit to them a copy, for publication, of the very appro- 
- priate, impressive, and eloquent Address, delivered by yon before 
the people of this City, in the Independent Presbyterian Church. 
on Wednesday, the 12th May, 1841. 

We are, very respectfully, 

Your Fellow Citizens, 






JOSEFH W. JACKSON, 
R. R. CUYLER, 
G. B. CUMMLNG, 
GEORGE J. BULLOCH, 
J P. STUART, 
GEORGE J. KOI. LOCK, 



H. K. PRESTON, 
M. H. m'aLLIHTER, 
SOLOMON COHEN, 

F. S. BARTOW, 
H. SISTARE, 
JAMES F. GRIFFIN, 



WILLIAM II. DAVIS. 



SAVANNAH, May Wt/,, 1841. 
Gentlemen: — I have received your note, requesting me to 

furnish, for publication, a copy of my Address on the Lite and 
Character of General William Henry Harrison, delivered on 
the 12th inst., and have, in reply, to say thai I do not feel at 
liberty to withhold from the Citizens of Savannah, a paper which 
was prepared in obedience to their wishes. The Address is 
therefore at your disposal. 

I am, very respectfully, 

Your Fellow Citizen, 

JOHN MACPHERSON BERRIEN 

To Col. Jos. W. Jackson, Chairman, and the Committee o) Oiti 

of Savanna//. 



EULOGY. 



Ox this bright and vernal day, when Nature, all around us, is 
robed in gladness — when the sun, in mild splendor, is careering 
through the heavens, rejoicing in the brightness of his course, 
and giving life and light and happiness to man — our eyes are 
resting sorrowfully on the emblems of our mortality, and sounds 
of sadness break upon our cars. The funeral drapery of this 
sacred temple, the minute gun, the tolling bell, and this array 
of mourning citizens, the silent sadness which pervades this 
assembly, the hush of the passions, the stillness of all unkindly 
feeling, the deep emotion of each patriot bosom; — all these, my 
friends, are calculated to remind us of the nothingness of man, 
of the vanity of life and all its too engrossing pursuits. They 
tell us that God alone is great; and, as we ponder the melancholy 
occasion of our assemblage, make us feel that HIS judgments 
are abroad in the land. 

A patriot statesman, a gallant soldier, a virtuous man, has fallen 
among us. We meet together lo-day, to unite in expressing our 
admiration of his virtues, our sorrow for his loss. A Christian 
people, bending under affliction, have come to mingle their griefs, 
seeking solace in the communion. Here, in this holy temple 
consecrated to the sen ice of Almighty God, we meet to offer our 
tribute of respect and gratitude to the memorj of the departed, 
and if God will, to learn, from this awful dispensation of His 
Providence, the monitory Lessons which it is calculated to impart. 

The occasion is a solemn one. There is a sacredness in 
sorrow, when even a solitary bosom throbs with its emotions, 
however humble may have been the station, or limited th< 
sphere of action, of him who awakens them. Bui our's is no 
ordinary sorrow — no solitary anguish — no merely individual 
grief. A NATION MOURNS. Throughout the wide extent 
ot this great confederacy ''a voice has been heard, lamentation 



and weeping and great mourning," — millions of freemen, bewail- 
ing the loss of their venerated chief. 

How impotent is man! How unavailing his sorrow! The fiat 
has gone forth — the fatal bolt has been sped — and he who but 
yesterday, in the vigor of health, in the fulness of earthly honor, 
commanded the love and reverence of millions, now sleeps in the 
dust, the cold and lifeless tenant of the tomb. Startled by the 
appalling event, we turn to each other, vainly seeking consolation. 
Let us then seek it, in contemplating the virtues of our departed 
friend and benefactor. . Let us seek and find it, in humble resig- 
nation to the will of Heaven. Let us endeavor to fulfil the pur- 
pose of our assemblage, by a rapid survey of the principal inci- 
dents in the eventful life of Gen. Harrison, pausing occasionally 
to note the formation, developement, and prominent points of his 
character, and then contemplate as calmly as we may, as profitably 
as we can, the afflictive dispensation of Providence which we 
have assembled to deplore. 

William Henry Harrison was a native of Virginia. He 
could look back upon a line of ancestors who had been distin- 
guished by their devotion to civil liberty; and the lengthened 
chain was still bright in the person of his immediate progenitor. 
In a country like our's, where, in theory at least, political as well 
as private advancement is the result of personal merit, the boast 
of ancestry is vain and frivolous. Nevertheless, it is true that 
the desire to transmit, and the fear to degrade, an unspotted fame, 
constitute a powerful stimulus of human action; one which is 
associated with the highest and holiest feelings of the human 
heart, and which is eminently subservient to the cause of virtue. 
There is truth, as well as poetry, in this expression of the feelings 
of a father, looking back with honest pride to the memory of his 
grandsire, and forward with anxious hope to the welfare of his 
child, 

"He, dying, bequeath'd to his son a good name, 
Which unsullied, descended to me; 
For mj child I've preserv'd it unblemish'd by shame, 
And it still from a spot shall go free." 

Neither is it to be doubted, that striking incidents in the history 
of our ancestors are calculated to develope, in our own bosoms, 
feelings which are consentaneous with those which produced them. 



The lineal descendant of that gallant Englishman, who, in the 
wars of the Commonwealth, poured out his blood in vindication 
of his principles — enthusiastic and mistaken if you will, but still 
honestly entertained and gallantly asserted, in many a hard-fought 
field — who in the certain prospect of a painful and ignominious 
death, boldly confronted his accusers with the declaration, "that 
what he had done was from the immediate impulse of the spirit 
of Ciod; that he would not, for any benefit to himself, hurt a hail 
of the poorest man or woman upon earth; that duiing the usur- 
pation of Cromwell, when all acknowledged his right, or bowed 
down to his power, he had boldly confronted the usurper to his 
face; and that all the tenors of imprisonment, and all the 
allurements of ambition, had not been able to bend him to a com- 
pliance with the will of that deceitful tyrant" — the descendant 
of this gallant soldier who bowed his head on the fatal block, 
amid the taunts and contumely of his executioners, with the same 
indomitable courage which had so eminently characterized his 
life — a young, ardent, enthusiastic American, the descendant of 
such a man, it may at least be permitted to us to say, would 
naturally have read with a peculiar and stirring interest this 
melancholy page of England's blood-stained annals — while of the 
feeling which it would awaken in his bosom, who will venture to 
estimate the force 1 

There is another consideration, powerful in its influence, prac- 
tical in its operation, which cannot be disregarded in contempla- 
ting the formation of character. It is the principle of imitation, 
which is universally operative. We are formed in the image of our 
Maker, physically distinguished from the mere animals which live 
and move and have their being around us, in this, that our view is 
upward, to the Heavens. Our aspirations are to the God and Fa- 
ther of our being, seeking as it were to catch an emanation of his 
spirit; and we are commanded to become more and more conform- 
ed to the image of his Son. In the early mental developements of 
a child, his views are limited to his earthly parents — and happy, 
thrice happy, is he who finds in these authors of his being, objects 
alike worthy of his love and imitation. 

The immediate progenitor of our departed friend was distin. 
guished in the circle of his Revolutionary associates by a sound 



and discriminating judgment, an ardent patriotism, and indomita- 
ble courage. A member of Congress in 1775, as be bad been pre- 
viously, he was placed by the equal vote of the House in compe- 
tition with the illustrious Hancock for the Speaker's chair, and he 
himself decided the controversy. Conducting his retiring oppo- 
nent to the official seat, be declared his determination to make Mr. 
Hancock President of Congress, for the purpose of showing to 
Great Britain, what little regard was paid to her proclamation 
which excluded him from pardon. Can we doubt that the coun- 
sels of such a parent to the child of his affections would breathe 
that spirit of noble disinterestedness, of lofty patriotism, by which 
he was himself so eminently distinguished] He lived to impart 
that spirit to his son, to impress these counsels on his mind, and 
to illustrate them by along course of public service, which termi- 
nated only with bis life. 

In other respects, the younger Harrison was peculiarly favored 
in his earlier yeais. He was carefully and classically educated 
in the first collegiate institution of bis native state of Virginia; but 
the times and his associations furnished a fund of instruction, which 
no literary Alma Mater was competent to afford. He was fitting 
himself for the part which be was destined to act on the theatre of 
life, in the proud and palmy days of that ancient and renowned 
Commonwealth. The story of her Revolutionary achievements 
was yet fresh in the memory, and often on the lips of living actors 
in the glorious struggle. The virtues which were begotten m 
that perilous hour which "tried men's souls," aye, and refined them 
too still lived in the bosoms of that heroic band. Associated with 
the illustrious companions of his patriotic sire, he listened with all 
the enthusiasm of his age and temperament, as they discoursed 
of the past condition and future prospects of Ins country, and 
treasured in his mind the lessons of wisdom which fell from then- 
lips, and engraved on his heart the lofty principles of patriotism 
which they inculcated and enforced. 

At the termination of his collegiate course he repaired to Phil- 
adelphia, and engaged in the study of medicine. The guardian o 
his youth was the celebrated Robert Morris, the distinguished 
financier of the Revolution; his medical instructor, the no less cel- 
ebrated Benjamin Rush. Each of these bad taken an active part 





In vindication of his country's rights, and both their names were in- 
scribed on the recorded Declaration ofher Independence. Congress 
too was there, consisting at that day, of men alike distinguished 
by talents and patriotism and eminent public service; and there 
too, was Washington crowning his own great work by an admin- 
istration of the Federal Government, which commanded the grat- 
itude of his countrymen, and the admiration of the world. Under 
such auspices, amid such associations, the young and ardent mind 
of Harrison was naturally diverted from the peaceful pursuits of 
medical study. His ambition was awakened. The image ot the 
tented field, with all the pomp and circumstance of glorious war, 
had fired his imagination. He sought and obtained at the hand of 
W ashington a commission in the army, and was soon traversing 
the Western wilds in pursuit of his regiment. He joined it in time 
to witness the confusion and dismay which followed the defeat of the 
gallant, but unfortunate St. Clair, and to share in that desperate con- 
flict, which under the guidance of Wayne, the Revolutionary Hero 
of Stoney Point, gave peace to the North- Western Territory, 
by the decisive victory of the Miami. In that battle, Lieut. Har- 
rison made his first essay in arms, as the Aid-de-Camp of the com- 
manding General, and was complimented in general orders "for 
his zeal and activity, and by his conduct and bravery exciting the 
troops to press for victory." Two distinguished field officers rep- 
resent him, as having been " in the foremost front of the hottest 
battle" — as having been " exposed from the commencement to 
the close of the action" — as having" hastened wherever duty call- 
ed, regardless df danger" — and having "by his efforts and example 
contributed as much to secure the fortune of the day, as any officer 
subordinate to the Commander-in-Chief." 

He was now promoted to the command of a company, and Fort 
Washington, the most important station on the Western from 
was entrusted to his care. 13ut the army in time of peace had no 
charms for his young and enterprising spirit. He had, moreover", 
while in command of that post, united himself to her, who was 
destined to be his partner through life, and in the anguish of the 
heart's desolation to weep over his grave. He resigned his com- 
mission, and retired to his farm. Soon, however, recalled to the 

public service, he filled in succession the offices ,,r Secretary of 
o 



10 

the North- Western Territory, of delegate to Congress, that of 
Governor of Indiana, and temporai-ily, of upper Louisiana. His 
first appearance in Congress was marked by an act of considerate 
benevolence. He proposed and effected in that body, a modifica- 
tion of the land system, which opened the rich lands of the West 
to the poor but enterprising settler; and by this single act of wis- 
dom and humanity, which was eminently conducive to the hest in- 
terests of the Government, secured the comforts of home to mul- 
titudes of freemen, who hailed him as their benefactor, and many 
of whom still live to bless his memory. 

He held the government of Indiana, by original, or renewed 
appointments of Mr. Adams, Mr. Jefferson, and Mr. Madison, 
and connected with, or independently of it, was invested by spe- 
cial commision, with larger powers than were perhaps ever grant- 
ed to any other individual citizen. How he discharged his duties 
may be inferred from these repeated appointments; may be seen 
in the resolutions and memorials of the Legislative Council of the 
Territory; may be felt, as we recollect the enthusiasm with which 
the people of Indiana rallied to his support during the late Presi- 
dential canvass. 

The magnitude of the trust which was thus committed to him, 
Was not greater than were the difficulties which attended its exe- 
cution. Indiana, then of almost boundless extent, was sparsely 
populated, consisting for the most part of three principal settle- 
ments, which were distant from each other. The wilderness 
which separated them was the haunt of savage tribes, thirsting to 
revenge the humiliating defeat of Miami. In the dark recesses of 
the forest, they brooded over their real or imaginary wrongs. 
Their thoughts were of other days, of the deeds of their fathers, 
of their recent, undisturbed possession of the land, now subjected 
to the dominion of the white man. They called to remembrance 
their own glorious triumphs over Harmar, and St. Clair, and mem- 
ory brought before them, in all its bitteniess, the terrible retribu- 
tion with which they had been visited by Wayne. While they 
were yet goaded by these recollections, superstition was invoked 
with all its maddening influences, to silence the fears of the timid, 
to inflame the fury of" the brave. Two extraordinary personage? 
vow appeared on this great Western theatre, the Shawanese pro- 



11 

g>het, and his warrior brother, the gallant Tecumthe. T 
history is written on the blood-stained pages of out aboriginal an 
nals. Claiming to be entrusted with a message from on high, tb< 
Prophet sought, by his magic incantations and mystic rites, to in- 
spire the various tribes, with a superstitious reverence which would 
subject them to his will. He called upon them to avenge their ac- 
cumulated wrongs, announced the commands, and promised the 
protection, of the Great Spirit. His gallant and more enlightened 
brother, looked with unmingled contempt on the juggleries ol 
him, whom he considered at once, as a dupe, and an impostor. 
One feeling however united them, it was the thrist for revenge; 
and they sought to satiate it in the blood of the white man. While 
the Prophet raved under the guise of an affected, or the delusion 
of an imagined inspiration, Tecumthe grasped the tomahawk, and 
shouted the war-whoop. They traversed our Western border 
from its northern to its southern limit, and their united influenct 
was preparing the various tribes, for one great, simultaneous act 
of savage vengeance. Yet the language of peace was on their 
lips, and their intercourse with our Western brethren, was con- 
tinued, under reiterated assurances of their determination to pre- 
serve it. Secretly as these proceedings were conducted, thej 'lid 
not escape the watchful eye of Harrison; he sought and ob- 
tained an interview with Tecumthe, and upbraided him with 
his duplicity, until the warrior spirit of the chief overcame his pru- 
dence, and betrayed his feelings; he grasped his war-club, and 
forty armed chiefs who were present at the conference clustered 
around him; the steady firmness, and stern decision of Harrison, 
alone prevented the council chamber from being deluged in blood. 
But although he restrained, he could not subdue the revengeful 
spirit of the savage chieftain. That spirit was soon again displayed 
on the bloody Held of 'I ippecanoe, which added a new and 
brighter wreath to the laurel crown that already graced the brow 
of the young warrior of the Miami. The conduct ol" General 
Harrison in that memorable battle, received the unqualified ap- 
probation of those who shared his dangers; secured the devotion 
of Indiana; obtained for him a resolution of thanks from the legis- 
lature of Kentucky, whose gallant sons had freely shed their blood 
in the conflict — from whose governor, he also received the unpre- 



12 

cedented compliment of being appointed a Major-General I >y bit- 
vet in the militia of that State; which was immediately followed by 
his appointment to a brigade in the army of the United States, and 
very speedily, to the chief command of the whole North-Western 
army. 

This accumulation of honors from so many distinct and en- 
tirely independent sources, sustained as it was, by the enthusias- 
tic devotion of the people more immediately exposed to the perils 
which his skill and gallantry had averted, proclaims in language 
which cannot be misunderstood, the high and commanding 
character of the patriot soldier by whom they were nobly 
won. We are standing, as it were, around the yet green 
grave of the wairior chief. His immortal spirit has ascended to 
the God who gave it. Our censure and our applause fall alike 
unheeded on his cold and lifeless remains, and calumny's bitter 
taunt, and friendship's cheering smile, would be equally unheard 
and disregarded. But the homage which is due to truth, the du- 
ty which we owe to ourselves, the claims of our common coun- 
try, whose richest treasure is the inspiring example of her dis- 
tinguished sons, all these unite to demand, this simple, passing 
tribute to the Hero of Tippecanoe. I may not trust my personal 
feelings to say more. I could not wrong the memory of a departed 
friend by saying less. 

General Harrison was now placed in chief command of the 
North-Western Army. The district assigned to him was sparsely 
populated, abounding with Military posts which he was compell- 
ed to sustain, and scattered settlements which it devolved upon 
him to protect. Hordes of savage tribes roamed through a wil- 
derness of one hundred and fifty miles in extent, and an active en- 
emy, with the aid of his Indian allies, was ready to strike at any 
point which was exposed. He surmounted all these difficulties, 
drove the enemy from the Territory, vanquished him on his 
own ground, and gave peace to a harassed people. I may be 
permitted to advert briefly, to two of the principal incidents of the 
campaign of 1813. 

At the foot of the rapids of the Miami, and on its south-eastern 
side, General Harrison had established a station, afterwards called 
fort Meigs, which was invested by the enemy. Such prepa- 



la 

ibs i'ur its defence as his circumstances permitted, had been 
made by him, and he instantly repaired to the post of danger. 
I'hc force of the enemy was greatly superior to thai under his 

command. They had already commenced the construction of 
three powerful batteries on the north-western side of the river, 
while on the other side, the fort was invested by their Indian al- 
ies. Jusl as these were completed, and when the skill audi activi- 
ty of the British Engineer seemed about to be rewarded, his plans 
were frustrated. While the enemy were constructing their lot- 
teries, General Harrison had, unseen by his adversary, comple- 
ted a traverse through his camp, which afforded protection from 
their fire. The exulting Briton was in the act of loading his 
guns, and adjusting them on certain objects within the American 
camp. At this moment, orders were given to remove the I 
from the front to the rear of the traverse. A few minutes sufficed 
Ebrjthe accomplishment of this movement, and when accomplished, 
the army reposed in security behind the wall of earth which had 
been constructed. The tents, which had served while in front to 
conceal the progress of the work, were now in their turn protected 
by the work which they had concealed, and the baffled foe stood 
by his harmless batteries, foiled by the skill and activity of the pa- 
triot chief. 

I do not detain you by a description of the brilliant sortie, led 
by the gallant Miller, under the immediate eye of his commander; 
nor by a repetition of his heroic answer to the summons to surren- 
der. Let us rather follow him in his pursuit of Proctor. The 
discomfited Briton had now retired from our territory, and Gene- 
ral Harrison, in his turn, carried the war into the enemy's coun- 
try. He had surveyed our Canadian border with a military eye, 
had early suggested to the Department of War, the necessity of 
acquiring the command of Lake Brie, and had succeeded in incul- 
cating the conviction of its necessity. The brilliant victory of 
Petry had been won, and the star-spangled banner floated in tri- 
umph over this inland sea. General Harbison was now to reap 
the benefit of his own counsels, in the facilities which the com- 
mand of the lake afforded to his army. Availing himself of these, 
he advanced into I 'pper < 'anada. and urged his pursuit with a ra- 
pidity which Boon brought him in sight of the retreating foe. 1 1> 



14 

Sound him judiciously posted; bis right extending to and across n 
swamp, where it united with a strong body of Indians under Te- 
cumthe; his left upon the Thames, at a point at which it was not 
fordable; his artillery on the road along the river, near the left of 
the line. The plan of attack which this disposition of the enemy's 
forces suggested to him. has been considered by men versed in 
the art of war, as evincive of military genius, under the guidance 
of a sound and discriminating judgment. Already at the head 
of the front line he was about to command its execution, when 
the order to advance was checked by the discovery of an error 
which had been committed by his adversary. An officer 
who had closely reconnoitered the hostile forces, ascertained, 
and reported the fact to the commanding General, that the Brit- 
ish regulars were drawn up in open order. So unmilitary a 
formation could not have been anticipated, but the advantage 
which it offered was immediately availed of. That prompt 
change in the order ot battle, which commanded the admiration 
of the gallant Perry, was instantly effected, and resulted in the 
exhibition of a movement, as novel in the annals of war, as it was 
decisive of the fate of the day. A regiment of mounted Infan- 
try was brought up and formed in close column, its right a little 
withdrawn from the road where the British Artillery was posted, 
was ordered to advance at full speed upon the enemy, to force his 
line and reform in his rear. Recall to your minds the position of 
the contending parties, and contemplate in imagination, the event- 
ful incidents which followed in rapid succession: on the right of 
the front of the charging column are Gen. Harrison and his aids, 
Gen. Cass, and the Hero of Lake Erie forming part of the cor- 
tege. He has already given the order to advance, the charge is 
sounded, and Kentucky's gallant sons are rushing to the conflict; 
the right battalion has received the fire of the enemy which 
tells upon the front of the column — the leading horses have recoil- 
ed — another volley, and a momentary pause of the charging col- 
umn — it is but the pause of a moment, again it is hurrying on- 
wards — it has broken with irresistible force through the ranks of 
the enemy, and instantly wheeling, has poured in its destructive 
fire upon the disordered line — the infantry advances — the fate of the 
day is decided — and the laurel of victory again encircles the brow 



16 

©f the patriot chief; of such a victory, as in the language oi South 
Carolina's gifted son, "would have secured to a Roinan General, 
in the hest days of the Republic, the honors of a triumph.'' It 
was rewarded by a gold medal, by the thanks of Congress, by 
the applauseof a grateful people. 

Retiring from the army, Gen. Harrison was called to the na 
tional councils as a Representative in Congress, and proved the 
versatility of his talents, by the station which be held among his 
distinguished associates, lfedid more, be gave signal evidence 
of tiie purity of his patriotism, of his unyielding devotion to tin- 
constitutional rights of his countrymen. The lust of power, assum- 
ing the guise of charity, sought to deny to the South the equal 
rights which are secured to us by our Federal charter. The cele- 
brated Missouri question then agitated the legislative chambers, 
and threatened to convulse the nation, lien Harrison was a na- 
tive of a slave holding .Stale; reared under the influence of the 
domestic institutions of Virginia; but he was the Representative 
of a State where slavery was forbidden, where famatacism was 
striving to exert its maddening sway; and no man had a higher 
sense of the duty which a representative owes to his constituents. 
It is easy to conceive the conflict of his feelings on this trying oc- 
casion. Those to whom he was known, as readily understood the 
controlling principle of his conduct. Leaving to others the dis- 
cussion of the abstract question of slavery, be referred himself to 
the spirit in which the constitution was framed — to the rights of 
which it was the guarantee. To the conclusion to which this re- 
ference led him, he yielded as prompt an obedience, as he would 
have given to the mandate of a military superior on the battle field. 
The rights of the South were guarantied by the constitution: 
the spirit which originated this Magna C/tarta of American free- 
men — that spirit, upon the preservation of which, in all its original 
purity he believed the con; inuance of I union to depend — required 
their assertion; and his recorded vote manifested the prompti- 
tude, with which he asserted them. Admonished of the danger 
which he incurred by this opposition to the will of his constituents, 
he promptly answered, "I have often risked my life for my Coun- 
try on the field of battle, 1 cai t hesitate to hazard my popularity 

in defence of the Constitution." 



16 

After the termination of his service in Congress, General Hak 
tiisoN became a member of the Senate of Ohio, and subsequently 
of the Senate of the United States; exhibiting always a matured 
mind, extensive information, fluency in debate, and a lofty and 
generous spirit, the absence of which would not have been com 
pensatedby any other quality of the mind or heart. His service 
in the latter body, afforded an occasion for a beautiful illustration 
of that active benevolence which formed so prominent a part of 
his character. Major General Brown, the hero of many a hard 
fought field, had been promoted to the chief command of the 
American army, and had his head quarters at Washington. He 
still suffered from the wounds which he had received in the pub- 
lic service, but the energy of his mind triumphed over his physi- 
cal infirmity, and he continued in the discharge of his official du- 
ties, almost to the moment of his death. The generosity of his 
disposition had involved him in a pecuniary responsibility for 
a friend, which loaded with incumbrances equal to its value, 
everything Avhich he possessed. His official income furnished the 
means of daily support while he lived, but these were withdrawn 
by his death, and his large and helpless family was left in a state 
of destitution. In the scene which followed, the honors which 
were rendered to the dead, were presented in striking contrast 
with the sufferings which awaited the living. On the day of the 
funeral, you might have seen a lengthened procession, composed 
of members of both Houses of Congress, of the mourning inhab- 
itants of the District, and a long line of soldiery, attending his 
remains to their final resting place. On the next, while the splen- 
did pageant was yet fresh in your memory, if curiosity or some bet- 
ter feeling, had conducted you to the spot from whence they were 
borne, you would have found the cherished objects of his affection, 
tenants at sufferance of the home which had hitherto sheltered 
them, deriving from the forbearance of creditors, or the kindness 
of friends, the privilege of enjoying the common comforts which 
it afforded. It was a scene calculated to awaken sympathy, and it 
operated in all its force on the benevolent mind of General Har- 
rison. He originated a measure of relief for the family of his de- 
ceased brother soldier, and sustained it by a persuasive and elo- 
quent address to the Senate, in which he dwelt with kindred spin' 



17 

on the chivalry of the departed chief, and awakened the liveliest 
sympathy for the widow and the orphan. He reaped in full mea- 
sure the reward of his efforts. The highest gratification of which 
his generous nature was susceptible, was awarded to him, as he saw 
this estimable lady and her orphan children depart to their distant 
home, with a competence secured lo them by his benevolent ex* 
ertions. 

While a member of the Senate of the United States, Gen. Har- 
rison was appointed Minister Plenipotentiary to the Republic of 
Colombia. His residence there was short, having been recalled 
by Gen. Jackson shortly after his accession to the Presidency, 
but it was long enough to obtain for him a public expression of 
the respect and esteem of the government to which he was accred- 
ited, and to afford occasion for giving to the world his celebrated 
letter to Bolivar. I do not occupy your time by a dissertation on 
the merits of that paper; it has received the favorable award of 
his cotemporaries, and may bo safely committed to the impartial 
judgment of posterity. 

After his return to the. United States, Gen. Harrison lived in 
comparative retirement on his farm, the incumbent of an humble 
office which contributed tohis support, in the exemplary discharge 
of his duties as a citizen, in the habitual exercise of a liberal, but 
nnostentatious hospitality. Occasionally called before the public, 
in the different addresses with which recent events have made us 
familiar, he continued to exhibit the fruits of a strong and cultiva- 
ted, mind, capable of varied application and discriminating research. 
One of the latest productions of his pen enriches the collections 
of our Historical Society. of which he was an honorary member. 

This very imperfect survey of the life of General Harrison, has 
brought us to the moment, when, in obedience to the wishes of a 
large portion of his countrymen, he was to exchange the repose 
of North Bend, again to enter upon the busy arena of political 
life. The incidents of that eventful contest, and its result, are 
fresh in our recollection; but better, higher, holier feelings than 
these reminiscences would furnish, belong to the occasion of our 
issemblage. 

Come then, for a moment to the contemplation of his character, 
We may not hope to do justice toit, in ili<' little remnant of time 



[8 

which is allotted to this address; but however imperfect the sni 
vey, it will nevertheless be salutary. Our departed friend may 
still speak to us from the tomb, of the beauty of virtue, and teach 
us how pleasant are her ways. 

As a soldier, Gen. Harrison maintained a generous and suc- 
cessful rivalry, with cotempoty aspirants for military fame. The 
pupil of Wayne, he was trained under his immediate eye, in the 
field and on the battle field, when the principles of the art of 
war, as they were inculcated in theory, found immediate illustra- 
tion in the occurrences of the day. He was attached to the per- 
son of his commander, enjoyed his confidence, shared his counsels, 
and was himself engaged in their practical application. The dis- 
tinguishing qualities of that experienced and gallant chieftain, 
were therefore studied, admired, and engraved upon the mind of 
the young and gifted soldier, whose novitiate in arms had been 
cheered by his approbation. When in the fullness of time, Gen. 
Wayne was called from the field of human strife to repose in the 
tomb, and General Harrison succeeded to a like command on 
the same great theatre, it seemed as if the spirit of the veteran 
preceptor, had descended with his mantle, upon his favorite pupil. 
He too exhihited the same vigilance and circumspection, the same 
promptitude and decision; and by the combination of these qualities 
reaped, like his illustrious predecessor, a rich harvest of renown. 
If Gen. Harrison j^ractised the Fabian maxim, which leaves noth- 
ing to the fortune of war that prudent circumspection can place 
beyond its reach, the concurring testimony of his military associ- 
ates, that he was found, when occasion required it, "in the foremost 
front of the hottest battle," courting danger as his companion, gives 
assurance that the spirit of Marcellus also dwelt in his bosom. 
The prudent caution which he manifested, when that quality was 
in requistion, was not greater than the daring energy which he ex- 
hibited, when changing circumstances required the display of that 
attribute of his character. He baffled the British invader and 
drove him from our territory, by a cautious vigilance which never 
slumbered. He vanquished him on his own ground, by a bold and 
skilful movement, the united suggestion of his genius and his 
courage. He possessed another quality, which is indispensable 
t<~> the success of a military leader. Amid all the trials and pri 



I.' 

us and complicated sei \ ice, lie commanded 
mlimited confidence of his officers, and the devoted affection of 
his men. This view of Gen. Harrison's qualifications for com- 
mand, prepares us for the brief, but impressive summary of his 
military characti r, given by his companion in arms, the late \ i< • 
President of the United States, who embodied in a single sen 
tence, theresull of all these high qualities — " Gen. Harrison," he 
said, "hadfought more actions than any other General Officer, 
and never lost a batik'." 

It is said, that "an almost intuitive s i reat powerof com- 

bination, prudence, caution, promptness and energy, together with 
perfect self reliance and sell-control," are essential to constitute a 
iuccessful commander: now it must be obvious, that these same 
faculties, if directed to those objects which fall within the sphere 
of the statesman would there also command success. According- 
ly we find, that during his long administration of the Executive 
office in Indiana, and his subsequent service in the Senate of 
Ohio and of the Union, Gen. Harrison manifested a perfect fa- 
miliarity with the duties which belong to the civil departments of 
government. He had profoundly studied the constitution of his 
country, was well versed in the history of the times in which it 
originated, and knew, and had carefully considered, the various 
interpretations to which it had been subjected. His Executive 
communications, published addresses, and- legislative debates, are 
the productions of a discriminating mind, possessing abundant 
stores of useful knowledge, and habituated to reflection. But 
the speech delivered at his inauguration, which by the inscrutable 
dispensation of Providence, was also his farewell address, estab- 
lishes his undoubted claim to the character of an American 
Statesman. 

The history of his life is the record of his patriotism. In eve- 
ry situation in which he was placed, the animating principle of hie 
conduct was an ardent love of country. lie cherished the na- 
tional union as the palladium of our liberty ; but he asserted the 
sovereignty of the states as the safe-guard of the union. He 
knew that the Federal Constitution had been framed in the spirit 
of mutual concession and guarantee. \\<- lilt, thai in very truth 
'us was the vital principle of our Union. With him. therefore 



20 

the preservation of that spirit, in all its original purity and \i_ 
was the first duty of patriotism. He exhibited unyielding integ- 
rity, and a noble disinterestedness in all his conduct. In his va- 
rious official stations, very large amounts of public money wen 1 
entrusted to his care, and many, perhaps unexceptionable, means 
of amassing fortune, were afforded to him; but faithfully account- 
ing to the government, whose confidence had been unlimited, 
he returned, like Cincinnatus, to his plough, poor in purse, but rich 
in the possession of that pearl beyond price, which wealth cannot 
buy, and for the loss of which it cannot compensate a mind con- 
scious of its own rectitude. 

The distinguishing characteristic of General Harrison, was 
active benevolence. This feeling never for an instant slumbered 
in his bosom. It was part and parcel of his nature, the moral 
atmosphere in which he lived, and moved, and had his being. 
With him, it was Charity in its largest sense, a feeling of good will 
to his fellow man, an ardent desire to promote his happiness. He 
was not appalled by the magnitude, or detei'red by the insignifi- 
cance of the object, which claimed its exercise. The sympathy 
with a suffering people struggling for civil liberty, but deluded 
in the pursuit, which dictated his letter to Bolivar, had its origin 
in the same feeling, which would have prompted him, unseen, to 
minister to the solitary beggar in his hour of anguish. His time, 
his talents, his physical energies, his purse, light as it often was, 
were at the service of those to whom he could minister relief. He 
was brave — that was a quality which he shared with inferior na- 
tures — but the spirit of benevolence which dwelt in his bosom, 
was an emanation from on high. It was superiority to selfish 
feeling. It was the capacity to find his own purest earthly enjoy- 
ment, in ministering to the happiness of others. I would illustrate 
this feeling ; I would give to it a distinctness of delineation, a viv- 
idness of representation, which may find its way to your under- 
standings and to your hearts, by awakening in your memory the 
remembrance of one, whom it was your privilege to know. There 
was — the time is not long past — one who was of you and among 
you, a kindred spirit, in whose manly bosom dwelled in all its 
living beauty, this same noble, generous feeling, of active, self- 
sacrificing benevolence. He was your companion, your familiar 



21 

friend, the welcome guest of your homes, the cherished object of 
your affection. His short, but brilliant career, was closed among 
you, in suffering and sorrow. He sleeps under his own ancestral 
oaks, beneath the monumental stone raised by the respect and at' 
fection of his companions in arms; but many a bosom in this as- 
sembly beats high with emotion, as memory recalls the image of 
the gallant, benevolent, lamented Tattnall. 

Gen. Harrison was a pious man. Love to God, and good will 
in man, were cherished feelings in his bosom. He lived under a 
constant, and lively sense, of the superintending providence anil 
care of the great Author of his being. I lis morning orisons daily 
ascended in grateful homage to the throne of the Eternal; and 
he retired to repose, under the soothing influences which he found 
in communion with his God. He had long studied the scriptures 
as matter of duty ; I use the substance of his own language, as he 
drew near the close of his pilgrimage; then, he turned to them 
with pleasure and delight — they had become precious to his heart. 
The daily perusal of the sacred volume, was an occupation from 
which no secular concerns could divert him. He was anxious to 
make a public profession of his faith in the Redeemer; had a 
few short weeks been added to his life, to restore to his mind the 
calm which had been driven from it by the exciting events 
through which he had passed, he would, by God's blessing, have 
accomplished his purpose. A christian people would have beheld 
their venerated chief magistrate, bending at the altar, in fervent, 
humble acknowledgement of his faith in a crucified Saviour. He 
had been grieved by the necessity which seemed to require, that 
he should forbear for the time, this public expression of his feelings. 
The prize for winch he had been contending, the necessarily prom- 
inent position which he had been compelled to occupy, the ex- 
cited state of public feeling, made him apprehend, that his motives 
would be misrepresented. He would have bome the injustice to 
himself, but he feared to bring reproach upon the church of his 
affections. He has gone to a merciful God, who knows the in- 
most thoughts of his heart, and will look with compassion on its 
infirmities. And we, my friends! — lam all unworthy of the mon- 
itorial office, but I may not repress the exclamation which rises 
unbidden to my lips — what a lesson to the laggard in that race. 



of which the prize is eternal happiness, while never-ending misery 
is the forfeit! 

It is natural to believe that such a man as 1 have described, was 
exemplary in the relations of domestic life; that the benevolence 
of bis heart found full scope for its exercise, in the endearing 
: Ions of a husband and a father. But may we, dare we, intrude 
upon that circle of gloom and sadness which hovers around the 
estic hearth.? O ! it were a delightful office, to soothe the sor- 
i xws of orphanage, to pour the balm of consolation into her 
wounded bosom, who was the idolized object of a hero's love, who 
lives to weep in widowed anguish over his grave. But there is 
a grief which is beyond the reach of human consolation, a desola- 
tion of the heart, to which God alone can minister. Let our sym- 
pathies find utterance, in the humble, fervent prayer, that he will 
mercifully sustain and comfort them. 

Such, my friends, is a crude and hasty sketch of the eventful 
jif e — ;1 cold, imperfect portrait of the character — of William 
Henry Harrison. I have designed to impart to it a spirit in har- 
mony with the feeling which assembles us. I see around and before 
me, the political friends and the political opponents of the venera- 
ble patriot. An assembly of American freemen, throwing off the 
habiliments of party, and purifying their hearts from its bitterness, 
bave come to give expression to their own generous emotions, by 
an act of voluntary homage to the virtuous dead. I would cher- 
ish the feeling which prompts it: it is alike honorable to them, 
and appropriate to its object. They will find their reward in the 
approving judgment with which real magnanimity never fails to 
cheer the bosoms of its votaries. The belief that his memory 
would prove a legacy of peace and good will to his countrymen, 
would have soothed the anguish of his dying hour. 

He is gone. This venerable man, so formed to conciliate affec- 
tion, so gifted with power, and animated by zeal, to promote the 
best interest of his country, has been suddenly called away, in the 
meridian splendor of his fame, and in the full tide of his useful- 
ness; and we are left to commune with each other in unavailing 
sorrow. 

My friends ! Let us remember that resignation to the will of 
He ven, i '' christian's duty; and blessed be God! the feeling 



which inspires it, its also thesouri 

solation. Would that every smitten heart might r< pre- 

cious truth. But wo art- only forbidden to sorrow as those with- 
out hope — it is permitted 1 ir dej 
'■(1 friends and benefactors; HE who w< pi over Jerusalem, 
mingled his tears with those Rii ted Mar] . who took npon 
himself our nature, and was touched with a feeling of our infirmi- 
ty, will look with indulgt ace, on i lie tears which arc wrung fn i 
our hearts on this melancholy occasion. 

Yes — It is permitted to us to mourn. For since the mom 
when tins great Republic was called to take rank among a itions; 
when by the blessing of Heaven, our independence was achieved. 
and civil liberty established on the sure basis of our constitutional 
charter — since that eventful moment, when has calamity like thie 
tefallen usl In the half century of our national existence, oui 
country has indeed been called 

To mourn the loss of many a patriot sage, 

And oft her tears have flowed upon the bier 
Of warriors fitted to adorn the age. 

It is true we have wept the departure of Washington, emphat- 
ically our political Father, wl sat and venerated name our 
children's children shall be taught to lisp in accents of infant gral 
itude; but he was summoned to receive the reward of his virtues 
when lie had closed his earthly labors; when lull of years, and 
lull of honor, he was yet lingering, as it were, on " the narrow 
isthmus which separates Eternity and Time." He was spared to 
us, until he had filled the measure of his glory, and finished the 
brilliant career of his public service. From the retirement which 
he loved, he was still permitted to survey the field of his f; 
-till suffered to enjoy, as time rolled on its course, the grateful con- 
templation of the blessings, which under Providence, he had .- 
red to his countrymen; still allowed to receive the homag 
sped and gratitude, with which we cheered his declining years; 
till at last in the fullness of time, we wept over his bier, and en- 
shrined the memory of his virtues in the inmosl recesses of oui 
hearts. 

How different was the fate of him whose loss we now deplcm , 
He, too, had from early youth, devoted his life to his country. 11 . 



24 

too had passed through a long, and brilliant career of public ser- 
vice. He was pressing onward towards the goal which was open- 
ing to his view. His talents, his patriotism, his pure unsullied vir- 
tue, the warm and active benevolence of'his heart, had won the af- 
fection of his countrymen. He had just been elevated to the 
highest, station of earthly honor. 

"The proudest meed that freemen may accord, 
The unbougnt homage of the brave and free" 

was his, his in the fullness of actual enjoyment; and apart from 
the claims of friends and kindred, and the holier duties of religion, 
the sole, strong aspiration of his patriot bosom, was to close a life 
of usefulness, by such an administration of the high trust confi- 
ded to him, as would give anew and enduring claim to the grati- 
tude of his countrymen. 

I saw him, as he stood in the presence of the countless thou- 
sands who had assembled to greet his advent to the presidential 
chair. The vigor of his arm was unabated, his bright eye beam- 
ed with its Wonted brilliancy, his bosom heaved as if with youthful 
emotion. His clear, strong, manly voice gave utterance to his 
feeling. 1 ?, in tones which fell with inconceivable distinctness, on the 
listening ear of him, who stood at the extremest verge of that vast 
assemblage. I witnessed the pledge of his faith — the solemn 
vow to preserve, protect, defend the Constitution — listened to his 
earnest appeal to the God in whom he trusted — to that gracious 
being, who had guarded, and guided his ascent to the lofty eleva- 
tion, on which he stood — and heard, with thrilling emotion, the 
shout of triumph which burst from that countless host. 

The eye of him who beheld this sublime and imposing specta- 
cle, rested upon serried ranks of freemen, gazing with reveren- 
tial affection on their venerated chief; and he, the first, great ob- 
ject of the august ceremonial, the depositary of their confidence, 
the cynosure of their hopes, stood before them, on that eventful 
day, full of life, and health, and mental vigor, strong in the affec- 
tions of his countrymen, in his own high and lofty purposes, in 
his firm, undoubting confidence, in the mercy of Heaven. 

God of infinite goodness! How inscrutable is thy Providence! 
This glorious day had just been numbered with the past, and its 
stirring events still lived in our memory, in all their original fresh 



25 

ness — the charm of actual enjoyment had scarce yielded to the 
pleasure of remembrance — the brilliant scene had indeed passed 
from before us, hut in the fulness of the emotion which it had 
awakened, we still dwelt on its cheering recollections, still revel- 
ed in the contemplation of the bright and glorious prospect 
which it had opened to our view. In this moment of joy and 
thankfulness to the author of all good, it hath pleased Him to dash 
the cup of pleasure from our lips. Our venerated chief sleeps 
with his fathers. In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, this 
mortal has put on immortality. How awful — how sudden the 
transition! From life, to death — from Time, to Eternity — from 
the summit of earthly honor, to the lowly grave — to that narrow 
house, which is appointed unto all the living. 

What a lesson to human vanity! What a rebuke to the vain 
and empty pride of man! O, my friends! How sternly does it 
reprove the bitterness of our political strife! One month — one 
little month, marks, at once, the consummation of the fondest 
wishes, and the destruction of the dearest hopes of millions. 
Truly the language of the poet is scarcely figurative, in its appli- 
cation to the events we are contemplating. Like him, in the an- 
guish of despair, we are tempted to exclaim — " The night of 
that day has descended in sorrow, and morning has returned in the 
shadow of grief." 

Let us awake to better thoughts! it is the God of our fathers^it 
is our own God and father, who has inflicted the blow. Rever- 
ence, and holy fear, are the feelings which become us. Let us 
bow in humble resignation to the will of Him, whose very chas- 
tenings bear the impress of his own infinite goodness. Let us 
learn from this awful calamity, the instructive and salutary lest-on 
which it is calculated and intended to convey. Here, in this sa- 
cred temple, let us erect an altar to patriotism. Let us silence in 
our bosoms every selfish, every grosser feeling:. Let the votive 
offering of our hearts be peace and good will to man ; and as the 
smoke of the sacrifice ascends to heaven, thither let our grateful 
orisons also ascend, in humble thankful acknowledgement of 
the mercies which are yet vouchsafed to our beloved country. 
From this last act of voluntary In mage to the virtuou6 dead, with 
feelings purified by the solemn service, let us turn with generous 



26 



confidence to the living, and unitedly invoke the protection and 
Guidance of Him in whose hands are the destines of men and of 
nations, for the Patriot Chief, who now commands. 



PUBLIC MEETING. 



At a meeting of the citizens of Savannah, held at the Exchange. 
April 7th, 1841, the Hon. James M Wayne presiding, and Maj. 
Wm. P. White acting as Secretary, the following Preamble and 
Resolutions were unanimously adopted : 

"For the first time in the history of our country, the American 
people are called to mourn the death of their Chief Magistrate, 
while in the active performance of the du ies of his high office. 

"The Citizens of Savannah, assembled without any reference to 
party, impressed with the solemnity of the occassion, as one far 
above all consideration of political differences, and feeling that the 
death of the late honored President of the United States is a na- 
tional calamity, do adopt the following resolutions: 

'■'Resolved, That the Citizens of Savannah deeply lament the 
death of William Henry Hakkison, late President of the United 
States ol America, and cordially sjmpatljise with his afflicted 
family. 

"Resolved, That a committee, to consist of thirteen, be appoint- 
ed by the Chair, to select a citizen to pronounce a Eulogy on the 
life and character of the deceased, and to make the necessary ar- 
rangements for the occasion. 

"Resolved, That we will wear the usual badge of mourning for 
thiriv days, as a token of respect to the memory of our late ven- 
erable Chief Magistrate. 

"Resolved, That the Chairman be requested to transmit a copy 
of the foregoing resolutions to the family of ihe deceased, and to 
furnish copies to our Senators and Hepiesentatives in Congress, 
to be laid before their respective Houses at their, next meeting. 



LEua'12 



